Many fans fondly remember the cheesy glory of the 1995 Mortal Kombat movie. The recent film tried for a more serious tone, though it also had bits of humor as well. In terms of its relation to the lore, the movie does its best to remain faithful to the series' continuity.

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It varies in some key areas, however. For the most part the changes are innocent, though a select few may rub fans the wrong way. At the end of the day loyalty to the continuity is not the most important part of making a good film, though opinions are mixed about the quality.

10 Cole Young Is A New Character

This one is the most obvious to fans of the series. Cole Young is a brand new character. This also makes his relation to Scorpion completely new. In some ways centering the movie around a new character helps balance time between all the established characters without making the film focus too heavily on one of them. To others, it feels like wasting time on a new character when they could have just added more old favorites.

9 The Mark Of The Champions

In the movie, only those with the dragon mark, which resembles the classic logo, can participate in the tournament. Killing someone who has it transfers the mark to the killer. This is why Sonya Blade is unable to participate in the training initially. In the games, no such concept exists and characters are dragged into the tournament for a variety of reasons.

8 Characters Unlocking Their Arcana

The movie introduces the concept of Arcana, which is the power each champion has. The training is designed to unlock this power within them. In the game, magic is a more normal phenomenon and some even have their powers for unexplained reasons.

Jacqui Briggs even mentions the Cage family inexplicably having magical powers in Mortal Kombat 11. Unlocking Arcana seems to only happen when the combatant is in a state of crisis or extreme stress, like when Cole has to save his family from Goro.

7 Kano's Eye

Kano's trademark move is a beam of energy he shoots from his eye using a special implant. In the movie, the laser beam is his Arcana and he requires no special enhancement to shoot it. The scene of him earning his Arcana is particularly funny, and Josh Lawson's performance on the whole is a highlight. Hopefully, the actor earns more big roles in the future. The Arcana could not protect his eye from a garden gnome, however.

6 Quan Chi Kills Scorpion's Family In The Games

The movie opens with Sub-Zero killing Scorpion and his family. This prompts Scorpion's thirst for vengeance. In the game, it is ultimately revealed that Quan Chi killed Scorpion's kin.

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Unless Quan Chi is an exceptional sorcerer, it is abundantly clear that Sub-Zero was the one who did in Scorpion and his family. If a sequel happens, we imagine Quan Chi will show up, though perhaps he will not have had a part in the conflict between Sub-Zero and Scorpion.

5 One Needs The Champion Mark To Travel Between Realms

Sonya Blade is unable to take advantage of all the magic at first because she lacks the champion mark. She cannot even travel between realms. Only after receiving the mark from Kano is she able to go to Outworld and help out Cole. In the games, people generally travel between the realms without any sort of mark. All they need is a little bit of magic. Once a character is introduced into the world they are used to traveling through realms without fanfare.

4 Scorpion Comes Back Differently

Cole Young enters the fight with Sub-Zero holding Scorpion's iconic spear. Through this Scorpion is able to come back and fight his arch-nemesis and finally take revenge. In the game Quan Chi revives Scorpion, telling him Sub-Zero was responsible for his family's death. If sequels happen, will Scorpion take a more permanent return or will he only be summoned through the weapon by Cole? Whatever the case, we hope to see more of Scorpion in a potential sequel. 

3 How Jax Loses His Arms

How Jax earns his metallic arms varies. The most notable version is in Mortal Kombat from 2011 where Ermac uses his powers to pull the arms from their sockets.

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In the movie, Jax loses them in a fight with Sub-Zero. After Jax is in a daze, Sub-Zero freezes his arms and shatters them into tiny pieces. Adding insult to injury, Sub-Zero then kicks Jax off the side of a platform, making him fall about 20 feet.

2 Reptile Is More Bestial In The Movie

Reptile in the original game is a simple pallet swap of the Ninja look used for Scorpion and Sub-Zero. Only in Mortal Kombat 4 does he gain a more individual personality. His look in the movie is the closest to the design from Deadly Alliance, but he seems even more bestial in the movie. The monster is not even clothed in the film. Some moves are still recognizable as Reptile's, such as the corrosive saliva.

1 Liu Kang's Origin

Liu Kang explains his origins to Cole Young while tending to his wounds. He was an orphan who earned his champion mark by killing a human trafficker. In the game, Liu Kang is Kung Lao's cousin and trained for the tournament side by side with him since birth. This does not change him significantly as a character or his role in the movie and makes one question why this detail was added at all.

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